Oct. 11, 2012

Michelle Rehwinkel Vasilinda

REBUTTALS

Michelle Rehwinkel Vasilinda is seeking a third term representing Tallahassee in the Florida House of Representatives, and voters would be wise to send her back to the Legislature once again.

A Democrat who has represented parts of Leon, Gadsden and Jefferson counties — though the new District 9 lies entirely within Leon County — she knows the primary interest of her constituents. That’s government jobs.

It isn’t easy representing state workers as a Democrat in a Republican-dominated Legislature that has denied those workers raises for six years while hitting them with extra costs for benefits. If you look purely at the bills Ms. Rehwinkel Vasilinda files — and that’s something her opponent, Republican Bradley Maxwell, is asking voters to do — her accomplishments are not impressive.

This past session, she introduced bills on sales taxes, energy efficiency, a tax on bottled water, nuclear cost recovery and the death penalty, among others. All of them died without a floor vote.

But that’s not where all the work gets done.

Teaming with other legislators and local leaders, Ms. Rehwinkel Vasilinda has helped win incentives for the film and entertainment industry in Florida, helped win KidCare insurance eligibility for the children of state workers, was a leader in creating the Big Bend Anti-Bullying Task Force and — in perhaps the biggest victory — pushed to save the jobs of workers at the Jefferson Correctional Institution, which was slated for closure.

Certainly, voters have a clear choice.

Mr. Maxwell, a small-business owner from Tallahassee, agrees that state workers should get raises, but differs with the incumbent on issues from government support of renewable energy (he would let the market pick winners; she supported such initiatives as solar rebates) to abortion (he is anti-abortion; she is pro-choice).

Mr. Maxwell also supports more privacy for state workers, who have seen their names and salaries published on the web, though that goes against this newspaper’s strong support of open government. And he would seek lower electric rates for Leon County residents, though that doesn’t fit the usual job description of a legislator.

Would a Republican from this district have more say in the Legislature? Perhaps. Would he make a big difference in that body’s dim view of state workers? Unlikely.

We have a fighter in Michelle Rehwinkel Vasilinda, and we should stick with her.